


A Matter of Preference

by 12gatsunohime (inkstainedwretch)



Category: Kuroshitsuji | Black Butler
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2009-05-31
Updated: 2009-05-31
Packaged: 2021-03-08 06:20:37
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,298
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26847310
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/inkstainedwretch/pseuds/12gatsunohime
Summary: Bard and Finny are cute. The end.
Relationships: Baldroy/Finnian (Kuroshitsuji)
Kudos: 12





	A Matter of Preference

**Author's Note:**

> Originally posted on livejournal [here](https://12gatsunohime.livejournal.com/7229.html).

"Okay here she goes. Now, every time she blushes, take a sip."

Finny looked down at his glass in confusion. The amber liquid inside looked like the stuff inside the family's private collection that they weren't allowed to touch. But the young master wasn't old enough to drink the stuff by a long shot, so he supposed one bottle wouldn't be missed.

"Bard," he turned to the man leaning beside him on the railing beside him, "why are we making a game out of Maylene cleaning the front hall?"

"Because!" Bard shrugged. "I'm bored! That damned butler threw me out of the kitchen before I even had a chance to _sta_ _rt_ cooking dinner! There's nothing left for me to do tonight, and I figured this way, we can make things more interesting! Anyway, every time she stops working and talks to herself about him, take a drink. Every time she trips, take a big drink. If she knocks something over," he pulled a bottle from one of his large apron pockets (yep, that was the family reserve, alright), "well, that's what we've got this for."

Below them, Maylene was in the middle of polishing the stair railing (with actual polish instead of shoe shine this time, thank god) when she suddenly froze up and ducked her head down, turning a brilliant shade of pomegranate (Finny and Bard took a sip).

"Good god, Sebastian!" She whispered. "You can't just do something like that!" (They took a drink.) "Not if you expect me to get anything done afterwards! I know it never means anything, but when he puts his face that close to mine..."  
  
She picked up her polish and walked up the stairs a bit to work on the next segment of the railing. On the way up, she tripped over her own shoes and stumbled, but thankfully didn't fall. Finny felt the burn of liquor all the way down his throat (but on the brighter side, he was so much more relaxed now; he'd have to ask Bard where he'd gotten the key to the liquor reserve).  
  
"Bard?" he asked. "Why does she get like this? All Sebastian did was talk to her. She never gets like that when we talk to her."  
  
"That's not quite it," Bard said. "Maylene's bonkers about him. If she thinks about him, she gets all flushed and distracted. If she gets anywhere near him, she starts shaking like mad. As far as she's concerned, Sebastian's the best thing to happen to the world since they invented the sniper rifle."  
  
"Why?" Finny took another sip as Maylene's face started to match her hair in terms of color (again). "I mean, he's really good at fixing things when we mess up, and it was so nice of him to take us in, and he's very polite, and he must be doing _something_ right for the young master to trust him that much, but why does that make Maylene so...blushy?"  
  
"She thinks he's hot." Bard stated flatly. With Finny, sometimes you just had to tell it like it was.

"Really?" Finny scrunched up his nose (which was every bit as adorable as you'd imagine it would be). "I don't think so."

Bard stared at him.

"Seriously, kid?" he raised an eyebrow.  


"Yeah," Finny nodded. "I mean, he's really pale, and his eyes look kind of weird, and he's really skinny. Plus, his haircut kind of reminds me of Ciel's Aunt, but without the fringe in front. Not what I'd call handsome at all." He took another drink as Maylene's soliloquy continued.

"Uh..." Not for the first time, Bard was completely at a loss for words. "Okay then, what _would_ you call handsome?"

"Oh, that's easy!" Finny grinned (his spirits had brightened considerably since they began their game, Bard noted). "Someone tall and strong, with bright eyes and suntanned skin and a nice, friendly smile!" He leaned in and rested his head on the taller man's shoulder. "Like you, Bard!"

...didn't see that coming. Bard honestly had no idea what he was supposed to say to that, rapidly losing focus on the subject of their previous entertainment and instead concentrating on the enormous eyes beaming up at him. Merciful mother of god, Finny was entirely too cute for his own good.

"You think I'm...hand--some..." he said slowly, taking another drink just to calm his nerves.

"Uh-huh!" Finny grinned and wrapped his arms around his shoulders. Bard could see that, for whatever reason, the young man's glass was empty; he must have had a different definition of "sip" than Bard had... "You're very handsome! And you're strong and kind and lots of fun to be around. You never get scary like Sebastian does when I mess up."

Bard tipped his own glass again to find that it was empty, and from his position he couldn't reach the bottle in his pocket. Well, damn.

The feeling of a small nose doing what could only be described as _nuzzling_ against his cheek brought him back to reality.

"And you're so _warm_..." Finny murmured dreamily. (Bard could _taste_ the alcohol on his breath; he should have known it would affect him more because of his size!)

It was all he could do to stand motionless and pray Sebastian didn't show up. What else could he do, with a hundred and ten pounds of compressed energy cuddling him like a teddy bear? _Just give him a minute, Bard. It's the alcohol talking. He'll get distracted by a bird or something in a minute._

Finny raised his head and looked at him with worry pooling underneath his eyes.

"What's wrong?" he asked. "Why are you so still? Did I do something wrong?" 

Bard jumped slightly, trying to think of a way to keep him from getting too worked up (oh god, those _eyes_. They got him every time). "No! No!" he said quickly. "I was just...thinking! About how...you're really nice, too!" Yeah, that wouldn't lead to anything awkward at all.

"Really?" For once, Finny actually looked skeptical. (Bard made a mental note never to give him this much alcohol again.)

"Yeah! Really! You're kind, and you're lots of fun, and I mean," (Why could he suddenly not form a sentence?) "you're always gentle around people and animals, even though you're so strong, and you're really..." here he couldn't help but laugh a little, "you're really cute."

Finny's grin turned into an expression of mild surprise.

"Bard...thinks I'm cute?"

There was a pause that lasted a little longer than it should have, during which Bard considered the person currently clinging to him, and what that person was doing, and what he thought of it, and what his answer to the boy's question could mean. Finally he decided that yes, this was worth the potential embarrassment. If everything went to hell, he could at least make sure neither of them remembered this in the morning.

"Uh, yeah," he looked away. "I mean, when you smile. It's really bright. And, the barrettes. In your hair. And your eyes are really...blue. Or, green. Or, both."

Said blue-green-both eyes expanded even further than Bard had thought possible before the young man gave out a shout of joy and squeezed him tighter.

"Yay! Bard likes me!" he shouted before pressing an enthusiastic kiss to the totally confused man's cheek.

From the top of the stairwell, they both heard a surprised shriek, and they turned around just in time to see the previously forgotten maid go tumbling sideways down the stairs, clutching her hands to her nose in an effort to stop a sudden stream of red.

"EEEEE! IT'S TOO SHOCKING TO HANDLE!" 

Finny blinked a few times before turning back to Bard.

"So, how much do we drink for that?"


End file.
